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The customer

Headquartered in Peoria, Illinois, Advanced Technology Services (ATS) has been providing IT and managed services for some of the largest brands in the U.S., Mexico, and United Kingdom since 1985. In addition to global enterprises, ATS also services a good many small businesses. This calls for adaptability in their offerings.

As Managed Services Director Bob Ascherl explains about his customers, “They all have vastly different IT and security needs. Knowing this, we offer several à la carte options to provide custom solutions that meet the needs of the customer. This also gives us flexibility and a competitive edge in the marketplace.”

The challenge

An AVG-Avast partner for the past ten years, Bob has seen the focus on security elevate among his customer base like never before. “We are seeing two primary challenges today—change and users. The threats are always adapting and there is a new vulnerability found and exploited nearly every month,” shares Bob. “Users present a challenge of their own. They are not always knowledgeable about the threats and as these become more sophisticated, users can be easily fooled. You can deploy all of the security appliances and controls available to stop the outside threats from infiltrating but it only takes a single user opening the wrong link in an email to undo it all.”Bob and his team feel new pressures to educate users and ensure ATS has maximum visibility into everything happening on their customer networks.

The solution

Historically, Bob was less than satisfied with remote monitoring and management (RMM) solutions: they lacked insight into devices on the network as well as device performance. That all changed, however, when he discoveredManaged Workplace. “We need the continual ability to recognize, detect, and prevent threats from propagating. Using Managed Workplace, we are able to find and isolate compromised devices quickly and easily. Through the integrated antivirus, custom automation, and scripting components, we are constantly improving our threat detection and remediation.”

Being a long-time partner, ATS experienced the evolution of Managed Workplace first-hand, and the new features are exactly what they needed. This includes deployment enhancements, service plans for faster onboarding, security site assessment, and the advantages of the new AVG-Avast antivirus integrated right into the RMM.

“We successfully deployed the latest version to 58 sites with less than three hours downtime,” Bob tells us. “And we continue to deploy new features. The integrated antivirus and site security dashboard have brought a real focus to the platform.”

The results

The enhancements to Managed Workplace have enabled Bob to cross-sell services and increase customer loyalty. “We are now able to sell the solution along with our Service Desk services as a packaged deal. This gives us an engagement with a customer, allowing us to expand the support we provide for their network and server infrastructure. Features like patching, automation, AV, and security assessments also increase our engagement with customers as they rely on the outcomes they provide.”

The newest version of Managed Workplace has also provided ATS the following benefits:

For Bob, these improvements are second to the importance of a strong partnership. “Our work with the AVG-Avast team is why we are still a committed partner today. It is a partnership in every sense of the word. They are willing to work with us, listen to us, engage with us, and help us grow our business. We work with an account and support team that are always available and willing to assist. They understand our business and want to help us succeed.”